Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo has £65m release clause with January transfer possible – The Athletic
Bournemouth reluctantly accept they may be powerless to prevent Antoine Semenyo from leaving the club as soon as January, even though their desire is to retain him until the end of this season.
Semenyo was coveted by clubs including Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur last summer but signed a new contract in July that runs until June 2030 and has enjoyed an impressive campaign so far.
To keep him at the Vitality Stadium — which appears to have paid dividends, with the 25-year-old forward already accumulating six goals and three assists to help his team reach ninth place in the Premier League table — Bournemouth agreed that the fresh deal would contain a release clause.
Suitors were told during the previous market that the fee required to secure Semenyo was around £70million ($92.2m), whereas the sale price for the winter is now formally set at £65m. It must be activated by a specific date, which would give Bournemouth a couple of weeks to replace their best player, and is available to any team.
The Ghana international has recently been linked to Liverpool, Manchester City and Spurs — however if Bournemouth manage to fend off admirers in the coming months, the mechanism will again be available once the subsequent transfer window opens, except at an even lower figure.
While losing Semenyo would come as a significant blow, Bournemouth have experience of key squad members departing and it failing to knock head coach Andoni Iraola’s men off course.
Centre-back Dean Huijsen moved to Real Madrid in May when they capitalised on a £50m clause and a year earlier Spurs landed striker Dominic Solanke, who himself had a £65m exit provision.
Bournemouth have also sold left-back Milos Kerkez, central defender Illia Zabarnyi and winger Dango Ouattara, only to maintain an upward trajectory. Those precedents indicate they will be working on targets in all positions and formulating contingency plans should Semenyo go.
Semenyo has blossomed into a game-changer
Analysis by The Athletic’s Thom Harris
Semenyo’s promise has long been clear to see, a talented, two-footed winger whose blend of technique and power makes him near-impossible to stop at full tilt. But after a promising end to the 2024-25 season, the Ghanaian’s attacking output has rocketed, responsible for almost one-third of Bournemouth’s goals and assists this season.
The 25-year-old has shone under Iraola, at his best with space to gallop into on the break. No player has scored more goals from counter-attacks this season, and all three have been eye-catching; a thumping finish after a lung-busting run to kill off Fulham, a dart into the box to sweep home his first against Liverpool, and an emphatic left-footed drive to double his tally on the Premier League’s opening day, keeping Ibrahima Konate and Virgil Van Dijk guessing after a twisting run.
But there is more to Semenyo than just pitch-sweeping dribbles and fast breaks, a winger who can draw in his full-back with feints and shimmies before bursting into the box. His robust build means he can hold his own in physical duels, difficult to dispossess with his back to goal, while he works hard without the ball too, a fundamental part of Iraola’s intelligent, high-pressing approach.
Understandably, this is news that will leave Europe’s biggest clubs on alert. A player who thrives in transition, with a proven ability of blasting his way through Premier League defences, Semenyo fits the bill for any side looking for a game-changer up top.
